Review: Dolly Parton charms at Comerica Theatre

The times may change, but at age 68, Dolly Parton is just as charming as ever. During her concert at Comerica Theatre on Tuesday, Feb. 28, the singer dripped with Smoky Mountain wisdom and sassy little one-liners.

For instance, she talked about growing up in a family of 12 children. “We’re not Catholic,” she said, sweet as molasses. “We’re just horny hillbillies.”

It’s the kind of cornpone humor that could get awfully sticky in lesser hands, but Parton is a pro. Everything she said dripped with sincerity, even though she’s probably perfected the gags through the years. After finishing “Jolene,” she chatted with a couple of Dolly impersonators sitting in the front row.

It would have been near-impossible not to enjoy Parton. Aside from the good-natured banter that filled the night — she seemed to talk between every song — she offered a packed set list that aimed to touch on every aspect of her career.

For fans of pop fluff, there were items like 1978’s irresistible “Two Doors Down,” a bouncy tune from her crossover heyday. Even without Kenny Rogers, she ventured down to the Bee Gees-country of “Islands in the Stream,” which had the near-capacity crowd at Comerica up on its feet.

Most of the early classics she opted to perform were stuffed into a medley, although she delivered a full “Coast of Many Colors,” complete with story about how “Momma” created the garment that gave the 1971 tune its name. Even if you’ve heard the tale before, it was a tearjerker.

The show’s strongest musical moments came when the spotlight was on her voice. She offered a near-a cappella rendition of her composition “Little Sparrow,” and her distinctive vocal trills and curlicues could send a shiver down a listener’s spine. Same thing went for a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right,” which she delivered with two backing singers. The Appalachian harmonies were impeccable, and Parton’s way of highlighting certain lyrics with her conversational delivery was put to good use.

She sounded amazing throughout. At times, she almost sounded too perfect: She’s confessed to lip-synching on earlier tours, and there were moments here when it appeared she could have been benefiting from some electronic enhancement. During some live TV appearances, her voice has sounded a bit frayed with age, but there were no imperfections evident on Tuesday.

On the other hand, it was a concert, not a singing competition, so it was hard to fault her too much, especially when the end result was so entertaining.

Posting a comment to our website allows you to join in on the conversation. Share your story and unique perspective with members of the azcentral.com community.

Comments posted via facebook:

► Join the Discussion

Join the conversation! To comment on azcentral.com, you must be logged into an active personal account on Facebook. You are responsible for your comments and abuse of this privilege will not be tolerated. We reserve the right, without warning or notification, to remove comments and block users judged to violate our Terms of Service and Rules of Engagement. Facebook comments FAQ

Join thousands of azcentral.com fans on Facebook and get the day's most popular and talked-about Valley news, sports, entertainment and more - right in your newsfeed. You'll see what others are saying about the hot topics of the day.